The leaders of the Murray Bridge Church of Christ invite you to join us for our time of praise and worship tomorrow morning, Sunday 1st January 2017. This will be our first service for the New Year of 2017.

Our time together will include songs and hymns of praise to God. We also celebrate the Lord’s Supper, also known as communion, where we remember the life, death, and resurrection of our saviour, our Lord Jesus Christ. Visitors who love Jesus Christ as their saviour are welcome to join us in this celebration, but this is not compulsory.

We also include some Bible readings and a message (sermon) from our pastor.

After the service, you can join us in the Coffee Shop for a time of fellowship over a cuppa. We would love to get to know you in a relaxed atmosphere.

Last week, as we moved towards that special time of year once again, one word has been foremost in my mind: Immanuel. This word does not appear many times in the Bible, but perhaps the most significant occurrence is in the first chapter of Matthew’s gospel: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Imagine that: God with us. The God who created the amazing universe came as a little babe in those humble circumstances in the little town of Bethlehem. How amazing, and how wonderful that He humbled himself and dwelt amongst us. This, truly, is the wonder of Christmas.

However, we all know that the narrative does not end there. The baby Jesus and his parents were under threat from Herod, so they fled to Egypt, becoming refugees. Later they return to their homeland where Jesus grows and becomes the teacher that we know so well as it is recorded for us in the word of God.

The wonder of Christmas week cannot be divorced from the events of Easter week. The triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the cries of “Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest”, the poignancy of the last supper in that upper room, the agony of the garden of Gethsemane, the betrayal and arrest in the dark of night, the sham of a trial, and the shame of the cross of Calvary. This is all part of the story which has drawn millions of believers in Jesus Christ to acknowledge him as Lord and Saviour.

Furthermore, the narrative does not end there. The multitude of witnesses who saw our risen Lord, the doubters who would not – could not – believe unless they saw the nail prints in his hands and the countless believers down through the ages who take comfort in the resurrection from the dead, and His victory over sin and death.

This is what we celebrate.

Not just a babe in a manger.

Not just the heavenly host singing hallelujahs.

Not just the adoring shepherds or the worshipping magi.

We worship a living Saviour. We remember his death in our place and his resurrection. We remember his sinless body sacrificed in our place. We remember his precious blood poured out so that we might have forgiveness of sin, and cleansing from all unrighteousness.

During the holiday break, the bookshop will be closed and the church office may not be open. For urgent Pastoral Care matters, prayer requests, and other urgent concerns, please contact one of the following:

Pastor Grant Spangenberg: 8532 2883 or 0419 848 336

Elder Trevor Hampel: 8532 3701 or 0408 839 381

Elder Ted Smith: 8532 3706 or 0438 850 270

Trevor Purdie 8532 1879

Prayer requests can also be directed via the Contact form above or directly to Trevor Hampel at trevor@hampel.com.au

Because of the Christmas – New Year break at present, plus public holidays, many of the normal events in the life of the church are in recess.

Christian Bookshop: closed all week (reopening on 16th January 2017)

327 Coffee Shop: closed all week (reopening on 1st February 2017)

Home Groups and Bible Study groups: all in recess until early 2017 (contact the leaders for information)

Monday 26th December: Public Holiday

Tuesday 27th December: Public Holiday

Sunday 1st January: 10 am Worship Service: Speaker: Grant Spangenberg

PASTORAL CARE:

During the holiday break, the bookshop will be closed and the church office may not be open. For urgent Pastoral Care matters, prayer requests, and other urgent concerns, please contact one of the following:

In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”1 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” (Luke 2 NASB)

This passage is a familiar part of the Christmas account. It will be read in most Christian churches this, and every, Christmas Day, or in the lead-up to Christmas. The scene has been imagined by countless artists, from the great masters of old through to Christmas card illustrators of today.

Capture, if you will, the terror that these shepherds must have felt. This was not your normal event in the life of a humble shepherd. The Lord’s angel suddenly appeared before them. God’s glory lit up the dark night. And then the angel spoke to them. No wonder they were frightened. I am so pleased that the angel told them not to be afraid.

As the angel went on with the message, I am sure that their hearts were still pumping madly. I’ve been scared by an unexpected fright like that. Not an angel, mind you, but by a venomous snake slithering over my shoe. My wife tells me that my face was quite white with fright. It took me a few minutes to calm down.

In the same way, these shepherds must have had thumping hearts and blood-drained faces. After the initial shock, they were overjoyed by the good news. A Saviour, Christ the Lord, had been born that very day. It was not what they were expecting, nor were they prepared for the heavenly hosts which appeared next.

What a night, what an experience.

No wonder they hurried off to see this saviour. No worries about the animals that they were supposed to be caring for; they had something of greater importance ahead of them. After they had seen the baby Jesus, they eventually went back to their duties. As they returned to their flocks, they went “glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen.”

This Christmas, pause for more than just a moment. Meditate upon the true meaning of Christmas, what it really signifies, and how this impacts your daily life. This day celebrates the birth of your Saviour, Christ the Lord. The baby Jesus, born in humble circumstances, adored by simple shepherds, came to this earth to save you.

That is reason enough this Christmas day to be glorifying and praising God for the rest of your life, not just for a night.

This week, as we have moved towards that special time of year once again, one word has been foremost in my mind: Immanuel.

This word does not appear many times in the Bible, but perhaps the most significant is found in the first chapter of Matthew’s gospel: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

Imagine that: God with us. The God who created the amazing universe came as a little babe in those humble circumstances in the little town of Bethlehem. How amazing, and how wonderful that He humbled himself and dwelt amongst us. This, truly, is the wonder of Christmas.

Our Bookshop volunteer staff has been very busy in the lead up to Christmas. It has been encouraging to see so many people buying books, gifts, cards and other items for giving away at Christmas.

The Bookshop will be closed from 4pm tomorrow, Friday 23rd December 2016 for the Christmas – New Year break.

The Bookshop will open for business again next year, on Monday, 16th January 2017.

The manager and volunteers would like to extend their blessings, praying that you all have a wonderful, safe and joyful Christmas as we remember and honour the birth of Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour.

We would like patrons of the Murray Bridge Church of Christ Coffee Shop to know that last Friday the coffee shop closed for the Christmas – New Year break.

Sigh.

The volunteers have all worked really hard and deserve a good rest over the coming weeks.

The leadership team of the church thanks all of the staff for their dedicated service throughout the year. The proceeds from the shop have provided much valuable support to a range of missionary groups.

The proceeds from the shop have provided much valuable support to a range of missionary groups.

Coffee Shop open again in 2017:

Don’t despair; the Coffee Shop will re-open on the 1st February in 2017.

We look forward to seeing you there again next year. Come in from February to enjoy a quiet, relaxing atmosphere, hot or cold drinks, delicious snacks and light meals.